A few questions guys (a. bolts coming loose) (b. oil gets dark quick)

[Bosrudorfer]

Hi guys,

My first question is, is it all that common for bolts to come loose. One of my turbo elbow bolt's was almost out and two others loose, in addition some turbo bolts were loose, and several months ago the JGS power steering relocation kit bolts all came loose.

Second would be my oil is getting dark quick. I changed the oil about 750 miles ago using 10w30 Castrol SYNTEIC and the oil now is near black and smells like fuel. My car was dyno tuned (11.4 all around) with 370cc injectors and a Nismo FPR, plus a walbro 255. Is this normal? Do SR's oil go bad this quickly? I do oil changes every 3k miles but I dont know if I should wait that long....

Thanks homies!

[wcbjr]

The color of oil really doesn't mean too much. You can send off a sample to Blackstone Labs if you are worried. But the fuel smell also? Seems like some ring lands may be broken. Have you done a compression test?

About the bolts, be sure to use some blue Locktite on them. Red if you are really worried, but have fun getting them back off.

[WDRacing]

I agree, locktite will work, or you could hit the gym and quit being a whussy.

The oil will be black quick, like a day of driving quick. The smell of fuel though...I've smelled fuel soaked oil, it was a leaking injector causing it, we actually lost the motor, well we lost a cylinder because it stripped the oil off of the walls of that cylinder.

Check your compression for sure. Are you sure its fuel? Oil stinks...

WD

[Bosrudorfer]

I agree, locktite will work, or you could hit the gym and quit being a whussy.

The oil will be black quick, like a day of driving quick. The smell of fuel though...I've smelled fuel soaked oil, it was a leaking injector causing it, we actually lost the motor, well we lost a cylinder because it stripped the oil off of the walls of that cylinder.

Check your compression for sure. Are you sure its fuel? Oil stinks...

WD

Would a leaking injector or a stuck open injector make a noise such as blowing wind/hissing? I'm getting this noise near the #1 injector.

As for the smell it seems to be fuel, when I pour in new oil it doesnt stink as when I take it back out.... I really hope it isnt serious... would my exhaust be doing any weird stuff like spiting fuel, oil, or any color fumes?

As for the bolts yes yes I'll just have to retighten them every couple months.

[boznuttz]

ive always been a fan of lock washers. they always did the trick for me without all of that messy locktite.

[WDRacing]

I've only heard them tick, but thats normal ops. A leaky injector can make start up very hard somtimes, or you'll billow smoke after startup. Do you have a fuel pressure gauge? Try a leak down test.

WD

[DammitBobby]

Lock washers won`t do crap for holding turbo bolt. The heat will cause the washer to flatten out and then the bolts will loosen up.

[Bosrudorfer]

I've only heard them tick, but thats normal ops. A leaky injector can make start up very hard somtimes, or you'll billow smoke after startup. Do you have a fuel pressure gauge? Try a leak down test.

WD

Hmmm start up is fine, and driving is perfect. I do not have a fuel pressure gauge, only boost and the SAFC-II. Sometimes I get white smoke when I start her up/idel, after driving it goes away. I think that's just the from the cold temps up here.

How would I do a leak down test?

Thanks for all the help!

[boznuttz]

lol, it was worth mentioning with pictures! any excuse to use a picture WITHOUT threadlock as a solution

[WDRacing]

A leak down or "cylinder leakage" test is similar to a compression test in that it tells you how well your engine's cylinders are sealing. But instead of measuring pressure, it measures pressure loss.

A leak down test requires the removal of all the spark plugs. The crankshaft is then turned so that each piston is at top dead center (both valves closed) when each cylinder is tested. Most people start with cylinder number one and follow the engine's firing order.

A threaded coupling attached to a leakage gauge is screwed into a spark plug hole. Compressed air (80 to 90 psi) is then fed into the cylinder.

An engine in great condition should generally show only 5 to 10% leakage. An engine that's still in pretty good condition may show up to 20% leakage. But more than 30% leakage indicates trouble.

The neat thing about a leakage test (as opposed to a compression test) is that it's faster and easier to figure out where the pressure is going. If you hear air coming out of the tailpipe, it indicates a leaky exhaust valve. Air coming out of the throttle body or carburetor would point to a leaky intake valve. Air coming out of the breather vent or PCV valve fitting would tell you the rings and/or cylinders are worn.

A leakage test can also be used in conjunction with a compression test to diagnose other kinds of problems.

A cylinder that has poor compression, but minimal leakage, usually has a valvetrain problem such as a worn cam lobe, broken valve spring, etc.

If all the cylinders have low compression, but show minimal leakage, the most likely cause is incorrect valve timing. The timing belt or chain may be off a notch or two.

If compression is good and leakage is minimal, but a cylinder is misfiring or shows up weak in a power balance test, it indicates a fuel delivery (bad injector) or ignition problem (fouled spark plug or bad plug wire).

I asked about a fuel pressure gauge because I wanted to know how fast the fuel pressure dropped off.

WD

[C-Kwik]

Lock washers won`t do crap for holding turbo bolt. The heat will cause the washer to flatten out and then the bolts will loosen up.

I agree if we are talking about any hardware on the exhaust side of the turbo, including the manifold and downpipe. However, the intake side should hold up fine. Loctite would also burn off on the exhaust side. You'll need a mechanical locking system - mechanical locknuts, safety wire hardware, or stage 8 or similar hardware. And you can forget about serrated or belleville washers. They hold longer, but I went through a bag of them and none of them held in the long run. I used a set with the mechanical locknuts as well, but only because I felt I might as well since I already paid for them.

[Florida240sx]

I tried loctite, gasket maker, and now put electrical tape on the bolt and then threaded it in.....still holding after 300miles

[PapaSmurf2k3]

I havent really had any problems... washer, lock washer, and a whole lotta torque seem to hold my bolts on just fine.

[WDRacing]

or stage 8 or similar hardware.

Its grade 8...duh caught you slippin...

[wcbjr]

http://www.crucialracing.com/p...e.php

[WDRacing]

damnit....

[C-Kwik]

LOL!

[Bosrudorfer]

That kit looks pretty good.

BTW good news, looks like my oil doesnt smell like fuel. I had some other people sniff it from the dipstick and they said I was fu*ked up LOL.

[Florida240sx]

Yea same here my oil smells different. Oil isn't thin or anythign but has a gas type smell, mainly because I'm paranoid because I killed my first motor that way. I have rich spots so I think it is a tad here and there that gets past....I change my oil around 1500miles. I use regular though not synthetic.... Although I add a qt of lucas to it